TIE Interceptor
If referencing the more prolific, shield-equipped '''Mark 2 variant', see below'' Derived from the technological strides made with Darth Vader's TIE x1 Advanced prototype, the TIE Interceptor heralded a substantial progression in Imperial fighter capability. It possesses a much more aggressive layout and styling, but utilizes many of the same components and control interfaces as those prior fighters that it now serves alongside. Most noticiably, the solar fins have been bent and elongated into a "dagger" shape. This increases the surface area to provide more collected power, while actually keeping the pilot's wide field of vision. This also reduces the craft's profile, making it much more difficult to target. Most importantly in this case, the four laser cannons are concentrated at the tips of these daggers, creating a deadly kill zone that is rarely forgiving to an opponent. This fighter was intended to replace the TIE fighter series, but the process has been long in doing so — more often than not, production and supply demands dictated that Interceptors and Fighters continued sharing company on warships and installations, with pilots often being tapped to fly either. At the behest of Emperor Valak, all TIE Fighters were relegated to reserve, training, or remote installation defense roles, and effort redoubled to fill the frontline units with the Mark 2 variant. All existing Mark 1's were amassed and deployed to the frontline units in the meantime. Another area of deployment for this nimble fighter is around important installations or with prowling Star Destroyers, where their speed makes them able to match an Republican A-Wing in a dogfight, at least in most cases. This is an especially key attribute, given that Republic tactics favor hit-and-run. Craft ........ Sienar Fleet Systems TIE Interceptor Type ......... Superiority Fighter Cargo Capacity ......... 75 kg Scale ........ Starfighter Consumables ............ 2 days Length ....... 9.6 meters Hyperdrive Multiplier .. None Pilot Skill .. Starfighter Piloting Hyperdrive Backup ...... None Crew ......... 1 Nav Computer ........... None Passengers ... None Maneuverability ........ 3D+2 Hull ......... 94 Space Movement ......... 110 Shields ...... None Atmosphere ............. 435; 1250kmh Can Land? .... Yes Hangar Space ........... None Sensors ...... Normal: 1000, Focus: 40, Passive: 250 Weapon Skill ...... Starship Gunnery Weapon Slots ...... 4 total (4 permanently filled) Weapons: Four Single Laser Cannons (fire-linked): Weapon Rating .... Class 5 Damage ........ 6D Fire Arc ......... Front Fire Control .. 3D Space Range ...... 1-3/12/25 Atmo Range .... 100-300m/1.2km/2.5km BASE COST NEW: 120000 cr BASE COST USED: 27600 cr SUGGESTED DOWNPAYMENT: 72000 (new), 16560 (used) Mark 2 variant Hard-pressed by near-constant successes by Republic (nee Alliance) starfighters, the Imperial Starfighter Corps took a bold step from underneath traditional Imperial Naval doctrine and experimented with installing shield generators on frontline fighters. Several models were proposed and developed, but the overwhelming sentiment amongst the pilots of the Starfighter Corps was that they didn't need a new fighter — but that they needed their fighter to survive longer. Several group captains and squadron leaders pointed out that Republican "rejects" could survive a mistake because they had shields, while Imperial pilots, even novices, were not afforded that luxury. Considerable analysis was devoted to studying combat tactics and actions, and the results pointed to multiple instances of TIE Interceptors and Fighters being overwhelmed in the first minutes of an engagement, even when the Imperial pilots got off an alpha strike or had the upper hand. The presence of shields made that much difference. Rumor has it that after the presentation of the results at an engineers' meeting, several engineers and a senior pilot marched down to the Research & Development Department of Sienar Fleet Systems and made chaos amongst those responsible for deciding what components go into production and what do not. Sienar expressed that they had tried to put shield generators onto TIE models, but the results were always unstable, unreliable, or ungainly. They pointed back to their entire production line, going back to even the Actis interceptor, demonstrating that they had never had shields. It is further rumored that the senior pilot, a staunch war veteren of some hundred engagements, marched out of the room, returning some thirty minutes later with a shield generator torn out of a Scimitar Assault Bomber trailing behind him on a repulsorsled. Depositing the unit on the floor, he looked the Sienar engineers square in the face and stated, "Make this work in that (pointing at a holoprint of a TIE Interceptor). You have one week." A week later, the first TIE Interceptor Mark 2 was born. Nothing else was altered on the TIE Interceptor except the inclusion of the shield generator. Due to the increased power draw, the normal maximum speed of the craft was reduced from 110 to 100, but this was not important to the pilot community — they got their shields. The only visible demarkation between a Mark 1 and a Mark 2 is the presence of two larger "pucks" in the stems connecting the fins to the central orb/cockpit. Imperial Navy administration stated in 14 ABY that nearly 60% of frontline units possessed the Mark 2 variant, with priority placed on those units that were operating from spearhead task forces or from "irregular" deployments, such as those on refitted cruisers and frigates. These units would have greater likelihood of engaging Republican starfighters directly. Craft ........ Sienar Fleet Systems TIE Interceptor Mk2 Type ......... Superiority Fighter Cargo Capacity ......... 75 kg Scale ........ Starfighter Consumables ............ 2 days Length ....... 9.6 meters Hyperdrive Multiplier .. None Pilot Skill .. Starfighter Piloting Hyperdrive Backup ...... None Crew ......... 1 Nav Computer ........... None Passengers ... None Maneuverability ........ 3D+2 Hull ......... 94 Space Movement ......... 100 Shields ...... 36 Atmosphere ............. 415; 1200kmh Can Land? .... Yes Hangar Space ........... None Sensors ...... Normal: 1000, Focus: 40, Passive: 250 Weapon Skill ...... Starship Gunnery Weapon Slots ...... 4 total (4 permanently filled) Weapons: Four Single Laser Cannons (fire-linked): Weapon Rating .... Class 5 Damage ........ 6D Fire Arc ......... Front Fire Control .. 3D Space Range ...... 1-3/12/25 Atmo Range .... 100-300m/1.2km/2.5km BASE COST NEW: 245000 cr BASE COST USED: 61250 cr SUGGESTED DOWNPAYMENT: 147000 (new), 36750 (used) Category:Starfighters Category:KDYSFS Ships Category:ImpMil Restricted Ships From SW1ki, a Wikia wiki. Category:Ship Stats